Mumbai: The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) is likely to take back the possession of a 2,000 square metre plot of land in Bandra which was allotted to Sunil Gavaskar to build a cricket academy some 30 years ago. The MHADA had given the land to the Sunil Gavaskar Cricket Foundation Trust (SGCFT) to develop an indoor cricket training academy.
According to MHADA vice-president and CEO Milind Mhaiskar the authority now wants the government to intervene and terminate the arrangement with Gavaskar’s foundation. “The allotment of the land was made over 31 years ago. But the construction work (for the academy) is yet to commence. We’ve sent a proposal to the state government for resumption of the land,” Mhaiskar said.
Mhaiskar also indicated that till such time that MHADA gets back the land from SGCFT, it cannot undertake to permit any other activity on the site.
The open land near Rangsharda Auditorium in Bandra Reclamation was leased for a 60-year period to the SGCFT in June 1998. The terms and conditions of the allotment were revised in 1999, 2002, and 2007. However, the construction activity for the cricket academy is yet to commence.
According to terms of the agreement, the government had agreed to give the plot on a 60-year lease to the SGCFT. The trust was required to build and run on a no-profit, no-loss basis.
PNN & Agencies
